Angels starter Garrett Richards exits game with apparent leg injury

Angels starter Garrett Richards‘ night came to a gruesome end in the second inning Wednesday when he suffered an apparent lower injury while trying to cover first base.

Update: The Angels announced that Richards suffered a left knee patellar injury.

Richards was running to first to cover for Albert Pujolsin attempt to complete a double play on a grounder to first by Brock Holt. Richards appeared to be slowing down as he reached the bag and his knee landed in awkward position, bringing him to the ground in pain.

Richards stayed down for a lengthy period of time, surrounded by his teammates, while the Angels’ medical staff came to check on him. He had to be carted off the field. Cory Rasmus came in to pitch in his place.

“That stunk. I was actually walking off and listening to him scream in pain,” Red Sox catcher David Rosssaid after the game. “I actually got pretty sick to my stomach as you could tell. It was a grown man out there screaming. It was not a good feeling.”

The loss of Richards could be crushing to an Angels team that has been the hottest in the game. Though he allowed two runs on five hits in 1 2/3 innings on Wednesday, he has been the best pitcher on the Halos’ staff this year, entering the night 13-4 with a 2.53 ERA.